|
CHIHUAHUA COLORING
Below is an outline with photo examples of merle coloring, traditional coloring and
brindle coloring.
THE MERLE CHIHUAHUA:
(Basically put....)
Merling is a dilution gene
which can express itself on dogs in a most creative way. It looks rather splotchy like acid being splashed on a dogs'
coat, that acid diluting the existing color.
It is unknown how the merling gene came into the Chihuahua lines
though some attribute the genes incorporation to a different breed being secretly bred in; while others maintain that the
gene was in the genetics all along without being recognized as "merling" by breeders who either didn't know
what they had or who didn't appreciate the coloring and bred away from it. Still others think it was a genetic mutation
probably brought on by severe inbreeding. Science is tending to prove the latter.
The American Kennel Club (AKC)
and the Chihuahua Club of America (CCA) have accepted merling as a viable color in Chihuahuas. This is significant because
AKC and CCA are the dog husbandry groups in charge of preserving the Chihuahua breed.
Breeding a merle-expressed
dog to a merle-expressed dog is hazardous to the puppies and won't be done in THIS house. I am not a geneticist and I
will not pretend to be. But I will educate myself continuously on the merling genetics.
I don't hand out Chihuahua
breeding rights to just anybody and I am breeding quality dogs into the merle lines to improve the lines to the standard of
the more traditional Chihuahua colors. I have a merle line, a brindle line and a traditional line; three separated lines.
WEE DO HAVE MERLE-FREE AND BRINDLE-FREE PUPPIES SHOULD YOU WANT THAT.
My main concern is to breed
quality Chihuahuas to the best of my ability, and to continue my ongoing Chihuahua education. If a tiny size comes from that
breeding, that is a bonus, though not the goal. If a few merle or brindles can be added into my lines in a healthy, educated
fashion, then that, too, is a bonus, though not the focus.
I have attached photos for your comparison; photos
which will be improved as time progresses.
Isaiah and his mother, Oddysey, the first day in West Virginia.
Isaiah and Oddysey, as well as deKay (above) are blue, white and tan merles.
Below is Toffee, a fawn merle.
Any color on the dog could be "merled". The merle could also fade away, called a phantom merle or
a cryptic merle. AKC asks us to note the merle markings on all AKC papers when you register the dog with AKC, even if the
merling phantoms out.
TRADITIONAL COLORING:
Black Tan and White (called Tri), Black and Tan, and fawns are the most common colors. These two fawns have black masks too,
though their sabling faded.
Traditional colors of Chihuahuas tend to fall into these colors...fawn, tri which is a black and tan with
white markings, black and tan, and black with white markings. They could have a black facial mask or black hair across the
back called sabling, be ticked, or be a white dog with black spots.
Less frequent colorings of red, white, cream,
and blue can also be found, though they are more rare, not usually as "refined" in the preferred Chihuahua features,
and usually more expensive.
A blue-eyed dog is as rare as are all-white dogs. And there are 20% more males born
than females which would explain why breeders usually charge more for females.
BRINDLE COLORING:
Girtie is a head-to-toe brindle with a black facial mask. We kept her sister, Kiki, who is also head-to-toe brindle, but
this photo shows the brindling pattern more clearly. If brindling shows up on a dog, it's almost always on the legs and sometimes
on the tans of the cheeks, though most people do not recognize it as brindling.
If you're interested in having a head-to-toe brindle dog, our Kiki should have puppies Spring of 2008, and Pearl might
have another, in the meantime. Head-to-toe brindles are very rare because it is more difficult to breed for the head-to-toe
coloring and most breeders don't think the hassle is worth the resources involved when the prices don't reflect the challenge.
Head-to-toe brindles are sold for a little more than traditional colored Chihuahuas, though not nearly as much as merled.
Pierre
and Tanner have the most-typical type of brindle, mostly on the legs, though Tanner has brindling on his cheeks and neck,
too. Of course spots on a white dog could also be brindled-spots, as is the case of one of Jaz and Ellie's ancestors.
Brindle should not be confused with "ticking" which are tiny dots on the skin; brindle is more of a
striped pattern (such as tiger cat stripes) on tan coloring.
Photo'ed also is Girtie, one our sold brindle
female puppies. The camera "caught" that brindling strongly in this photo of Girtie better than any other brindle
photo wee took.
CONTACT INFORMATION:
** Cell
(304) 534 - 0696 **
For the interest of our time, please, PLEASE, give us a telephone call
rather than an e-mail. Wee're a large family continually at home because wee homeschool five children and conduct
accounting and dog business from home. In our spare time wee garden and serve the community, church, family and friends.
I type 94 wpm but I speak 160! And because I want to give you information so you make a sound decision you won't
regret, I will be available for phone calls almost every single day and almost all hours.
Information cannot be
communicated clearly in e-mail form without a LOT of thought, effort and rewriting time. An e-mail might be great for a quick
note, but we use the telephone to communicate and wee can call you back long-distance on our nickel.
YOU are
our priority. Our household makes haste to respond quickly to your phone call. And you can always recall repeatedly should
you wish to do so, wee certainly don't mind.
Sarah ** Cell (304) 534 - 0696 **
Eastern Standard Time Zone
Please
respect our sleeping schedules 9:00 p.m. to 8:00 a.m.
Should there be an emergency, of course, wee expect you to call
and re-call until wee get the phone.
Our family's phone is (304) 986-9969 though they can only take a message.
Wee prefer you use the cell.. |
